The spring commissaires meeting has been scheduled for Saturday March 13, 2004 at 10:00 am. The location is the Sports Alliance building (OCA Office) at 1185 Eglinton Ave., E., North York, Ontario in Room 3C.

The main topic of the meeting will be race assignments for the 2004 season. Please let Chief Commissaire Doug Pogue know what races you have interest in being assigned to. Please try to reply by Friday March 12th

Cape Epic - South AfricaReport courtesy organizers

On the hottest day so far of The Cape Epic, temperatures soared to over 38 degrees Celsius. There was no escape from the heat as the riders battled across 'the bad lands' - a desolate area in the Karoo semi-arid desert. Three massive water refrigeration trucks sponsored by Imperial Logistics, holding over 2,000 litres of water each, helped riders to quench their thirst with ice-cold water.

One water truck, which holds over 2,000 litres of water, sports drink Powerade and Coca Cola, ran out of liquid by midday and emergency supplies had to be driven through to ensure riders didn't go thirsty. "We have a standby truck of 30,000 litres, which fills up at our bottling plant in Cape Town to replenish supplies for the race,' says Andrew Skinner, brand custodian for Powerade. 'It's vital that riders maintain their body fluids in such the heat."

For the first time since the start of the race, the sweeper vehicle was full, having to return to the camp to drop off riders exhausted and dehydrated from the heat. Medi-Clinic, which is supplying medical services for The Cape Epic, undertook a roaming inspection of the route on a quad bike, carrying emergency water supplies with them to stranded cyclists. Another Imperial Logistics 'shade' truck was also parked on one of the passes to provide shade for riders on the ascent. "It shows that we are able to respond to extreme conditions at short notice and ensure the riders' safety", says Cape Epic Marketing and Infotainment Director, Mike Hamel.

Exhausted by the severe heat were also the leaders. Despite the fact that the road ahead was 'burning', the leading men rode up Garcia pass towards the end of the stage with an average speed between 40 and 45 km/h in spite of strong headwinds. What was a day of survival at the end of the field, was a day of bad luck and attacks at the top. When U23 World Cup Champion Liam Killeen from the UK shifted onto the big chain ring in the first climb, like he did the day before, Andi Strobel (GER) and Silvio Wieltschnig (AUT) of Team adidas Fiat Rotwild had a puncture at the foot of Roibos pass. It took them nearly three minutes to fix it. By that time the entire field had passed them and they had to go past almost 260 teams. "It was terrible and exhausting to pass so many teams in an ascent, but at the same time it was great to see the guys in the back of the field", Silvio Wieltschnig said in the finish. Luckily, in an unusual show of sportsmanship, Namibian Mannie Heymans and German Karl Platt (Focus Rocky Mountain) together with the other leading teams slowed down and literally waited for them to catch up. Since the European teams are coming straight out of the winter season, they are short in training miles on their bikes, which the South Africans have obviously noticed. Today, Team GT Africa with Jacques Rossouw and Shan Wilson attacked several times in the flat passage where they are much stronger.

Highlight of the day for all participating teams were over 100 school children lining up along the route in Van Wyksdorp to cheer for the riders. It made them feel like racing in the Tour de France. And about 350 children of Langehoven School in Riversdale, today's host of The Cape Epic race village, waited with excitement for the winners to arrive. Heymans/ Platt and Rossouw/ Wilson sprinted together across the finish line, both completing the third stage in a time of 4.06.39, followed by Strobel/ Wieltschnig two minutes later.